Boy left behind in London on school trip

The Discovery School, in Newcastle city centre, is 280 miles from London King's Cross

A schoolboy was left in London when his school group boarded a train at King's Cross to Newcastle without him.

The unnamed 14-year-old boy was looked after by guards in first class on the next train until he could be reunited with a teacher who waited in York.

Gareth Rowe, principal at The Discovery School, in Newcastle, said the Year 10 pupil was "never in any danger" but apologised to the boy's parents.

He said there was no excuse for the "serious error".

Mr Rowe said the incident highlighted "a failure in our processes" which will be reviewed "so this can never happen again".

He added the teenager was "never in any danger as he had the presence of mind to immediately let station personnel know what had happened".

"Our first priority is always the safety of our pupils," he said.

'Urgent review'

The Discovery School, which opened in 2014, teaches a specialist science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) curriculum.

The free school is funded directed by the government, but the local authority has been made aware of the incident.

Newcastle City Council said it had received assurances from the school the pupil was safe and that the incident was being fully investigated.

The council has been told the school is carrying out an "urgent review of its safeguarding procedures for school trips".

In an Ofsted inspection in May last year, the school was found to be inadequate with "serious weaknesses".

A further inspection in December found "effective actions" were being taken to improve the school.

An Ofsted spokesperson said: "While we do not have the power to investigate individual issues, safeguarding or otherwise, where we have grounds for concern, Ofsted can bring forward an inspection of a school."